Category: Sociopolitical Observations

Iranian women flash a heart sign during celebration in northern Tehran on 14 July 2015.

What’s happening to Syria, and not simply in Syria, has been described by UN officials as the worst humanitarian disaster since WWII. In regional terms, this is also the worst disaster since the Palestinian Nakba, irrespective of how one allots blame for that one.

America’s leverage to speak on a variety of issues, from the aggressive attitude of certain countries to their record of domestic violations of human rights, is greatly enhanced and improved when America itself is not seeing as an aggressor, in action or in waiting, or as a major violator of human rights of others. This is true. But is this really the only issue, or even the main issue, undermining America’s credibility in this regard? Are those who are raising the issue of America’s hypocrisy and double-standards serious about their moral objection to intervening in other country’s domestic affairs and criticizing their cultural practices?

As prejudice and fear make objective facts irrelevant, how can we still manage our differences?

When has truth ever mattered where people’s prejudices were involved and their sense of security was on the line? Fear and prejudice trump all other considerations, and since they are perennial traits of our common humanity, the challenge is never about finding ways to eradicate them but to cope with their too logical consequence, namely: the irrelevance of truth, of facts which, no matter how objective they happen to be, often fail to alter our perceptions of unfolding events. Indeed, we are condemned forever to see and understand things differently. This is our curse and, on occasions, it may also be a blessing. But no matter how we view or choose to deal with it, this is always our destiny.

La Détente – multi award animated short by Pierre & Bertrand from Not To Scale.The film tells the story of a French soldier in World War I, who becomes paralyzed with fear while in the trenches. He escapes in his head to an imaginary world where toys fight wars instead of humans.

“Gulf states are increasing arms imports from countries including permanent UN security council members. Their increased involvement in regional conflicts is raising tensions with Iran”

Syrian-American Network for Aid and Development (SANAD)
The Syrian-American Network for Aid and Development (SANAD) is an independent organization launched in 2011 in Washington, D.C. dedicated to supporting the Syrian refugees, families and children, as they escape the conflict. The word SANAD ( ْسَنَد

Tharwa Foundation
Tharwa was established by Ammar Abdulhamid and Khawla Yusuf in Syria shortly after the events of September 11 to focus on inter-communal dialogue in Syria and beyond.

The Freedom Collection
Ammar’s video interview series on the George W. Bush Institute’s Freedom Collection Website

The United State has for long linked the recognition of West Jerusalem as the capital of Israel to achieving peace between Israelis and Palestinians. President Trump’s recent decision on this matter reverses the policy and does so at a time when the government of PM Netanyahu continues to pursue expansion of illegal settlements in Palestinian territories and […]

Rather than help curtail the slaughter and pave the way for serious peace talks, limited strikes risk re-empowering Assad while undermining the credibility of President Trump.Strike Assad, Sanction Russia, Support Rebels and Hold Peace-Talks in Geneva!Despite the wag-the-dog appearance of President Trump’s about-face on Syria—that is, the possibility that hi […]

Few notes on the latest developments concerning Trump Administration's policy on SyriaSome serious strikes will take place against the Assad regime soon in order to signal that Trump is serious about Syria and that he is different from his predecessor and will respond differently when he is challenged. Trump needs to send a strong message in this regard […]

Our self-appointed Lord and Master holds his first cabinet meeting finally giving us all the chance and the blessing to praise him.Not to be outdone, our other more subtle self-appointed Lord and Master awarded the honor of interviewing him to the great American fabulist Oliver Stone. The results were fabulous.Meanwhile, an old Lord and Master wannabe is pre […]

“I can definitely say the President is not a liar”Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee SandersTaking a leaf from Mr. James Comey’s playbook, “considering the nature of the person” we are dealing with, meaning Trump, we should indeed expect and prepare for the worst.And the worst may unfold over a longer period of time than most American may want […]

Mystery Solved After days of extensive research we can now assert beyond the shed of any doubt that “Covfefe” is actually an Arabanglish word. Arabanglish is an emerging language spoken by the Arabic-speaking diaspora in English speaking countries. As an equivalent to Spanglish, it combines Arabic and English vocabulary and borrows from Arabic and English g […]

A DELIRICUM OF WISDOMIn the Gulf, Putin and his hackers createda certain opportunity for which the Saudis have been eagerly waiting and Trump more than willing to take the credit. Talk about collusion. Collusion aside, pundits keep showing the world how little they understand the region. For the real reason behind the recent crisis has little to do with Iran […]

A DELIRICUM OF WISDOMYes, what Kathy Griffin did was horrible, but it’s the “butt” of her joke that is clearly to blame. After all, the most powerful man in the world is far more capable of setting the tone of our public discourse than any comedienne. And he did not just set the bar too low, he shattered all relevant norms. In the process he undermined not o […]